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vampire

A
vampire is a mythical creature who overcomes death by sucking the blood from
living humans. The most common variation of the myth portrays the vampire as a dead person
who rises from the grave at night to seek his victim from the realm of the sleeping. The
vampire is a popular theme of film
makers who have started with Bram Stokers's novel (Dracula) and added a number
of variations to the theme, e.g., the ability to fly (like the vampire bat); a lust for
beautiful women as victims who then become vampires upon being bitten; fear of the symbol
of the Christian cross; the repelling power of garlic or garlic flowers; and death by sunlight or by
a special stake driven through the heart, a fitting death for a character
commonly believed to be based on the
15th century warrior, Vlad the Impaler. However, according to Elizabeth
Miller, author of
Dracula: Sense & Nonsense (Desert Island Books, 2000), Bram Stoker
did not base his vampire Count on Vlad the Impaler. He borrowed Vlad's
nickname (Dracula) for a vampire character he had already conceived (and
tentatively named Count Wampyr).

Legends of bloodsucking creatures are found in many cultures throughout history. One of
the more popular bloodsuckers of our age is the chupacabra. The
vampire is also a popular literary subject. Hence, there are numerous descriptions of the
origin, nature, powers, etc. of vampires. What seems to be universal about vampire myths
is their connection with the fear of death and the desire for immortality. The ritual
drinking of blood to overcome death has been practiced by many peoples. The Aztecs and
other Native Americans, for example, ate the hearts and drank the blood of captives in
ritual ceremonies, most likely to satisfy the appetite of their gods and gain for
themselves fertility and immortality. Also typical were the rites of Dionysus and
Mithra,
where the drinking of animal blood was required in the quest for immortality. Even today,
some Christians believe that their priests perform a magical transubstantiation of bread
and wine into the body and blood of Jesus to be eaten and drunk in the quest to join Abraham's god
in eternal life.

We might say we've made progress in our ritualistic quest to overcome death. First, we
sacrificed humans and drank their blood to keep the gods alive and happy, or to join them
in overcoming death. We later came to substitute bulls or other animals for humans to
achieve our goal. Finally, we progressed to a vegetarian menu of bread and
wine. Even so, the basic truth is
depressing: for anything to live, something or someone else must die. Whether this truth
sets you free or not depends, I suppose, on your place at or on the dinner table. Since we
are deep into metaphors, we may as well note here that the vampire has become a metaphor
for those who define and create themselves by destroying others. People whose lives center
on destroying other people's lives by disempowering them, who reduce their victims to
dependent subjects to be lorded over, have been called
spiritual vampires.
Some of the therapists, ministers and gurus I've written about elsewhere in the Dictionary
could be called spiritual vampires, very aptly.

This cultural link between vampirism and the quest for immortality seems to have been
subordinated in literature and film, where other themes, such as blood for blood's sake,
fear for fear's sake, or entrance into the realm of the occult, seem to dominate. One sign
of the cultural deterioration of our ancestor's noble quest for immortality can be seen in
the modern secondary meaning of 'vampire': a woman who exploits and ruins her lover.
Another example of deterioration can be seen in the numerous WWW sites on vampires which
appeal to occult or New Age interests such as entering the so-called dark side of reality,
gaining power, establishing a unique identity as a special person or selling commercial
products and games.

Apparently, role playing and masquerading in vampire costumes is not enough to
satisfy the bloodlust of some people, and covens or cults of "vampires" have
emerged among some occultists. They seek blood to give them power, a sexual
rush, or to establish a unique and special fictional persona based on
creating fear and mystery in others. Unlike our ancient ancestors, their
power is not sought because of fear based on ignorance and misunderstanding
of nature, but on ignorance and misunderstanding of themselves. Like
other occult cults these vampire covens are attractive to the young and the weak.* Just a few years ago, such "vampyres" would have been considered
ill or evil. Today, they are said to have an "alternative lifestyle."
Some may be misfits who really believe they can draw energy from each other,
and who feel a sense of superiority over those who aren't part of their
inner group.

* "5 vampire cultists
nabbed in
killings," reads the headline of a story in the Sacramento Bee (November 29,
1996, p. A28). The five are all teenagers from a self-described "Vampire Clan"
in Kentucky. They're wanted for the murders of Richard and Naomi Wendorf of Eustis,
Florida. The 15-year-old daughter of the victims is one of the suspects, along with her
boyfriend who was described by schoolmates as having boasted of immortality as a vampire.

Vampire rumors spur alert at Boston Latin - on bullying
(Boston Latin School headmaster Lynne Mooney Teta issued a
notice to parents and students yesterday quashing rumors of
vampires at the school....When Boston police went to the school
Wednesday on an unrelated matter, their presence fueled yet
another rumor: that a vampire was being arrested....One student
who contacted the Globe said a male student, rumored to be a
werewolf, had threatened on Facebook to bring a gun to school
because he was being harassed....One 17-year-old boy said he
heard that some students claiming to be half-vampires were
draining their blood to make their skin paler or had claimed
they could fly.)